Our First International Training Took Place
Learning, Reflecting, Taking Action
From May 12 to 16, 2025, we welcomed 30 youth workers from Germany, Poland, Hungary, and Czech Republic to our first international training at the Jugendakademie Walberberg near Cologne.
Under the title “Forced Migration & Youth Work: Learning, Reflecting, Taking Action”, participants exchanged experiences in working with young refugees and explored new approaches to empowerment-based and discrimination-sensitive youth work.
Key Topics
- Forced migration in Europe: different legal and political frameworks
- Discrimination, power, and privilege in youth work
- Empowerment and power-sharing in educational contexts
- Using theatre methods as tools for non-formal education
- Creating safe and inclusive spaces
Expert Input and Diverse Perspectives
On two days, the program was led by Teresa Merz and Dorsa Billstein from our partner organization breitblick. As experts in empowerment and power-critical approaches, they offered deep insights and practical methods for empowerment-oriented youth work.
We also welcomed two speakers – Wahid Mowasaghi and Ahmed Begari – from the Cologne Refugee Council’s project “We can speak”. This project trains young people with refugee experience to become speakers in school workshops. In these workshops, they talk about forced migration, discrimination, democracy, and media literacy – and aim to make refugee perspectives visible.
During our training, they shared their experiences and led selected workshop activities with the group.
Cross-Border Learning and Shared Challenges
One of the most valuable aspects of the training was the cross-border exchange: participants brought in diverse perspectives, shared experiences, and learned from each other’s approaches.
A recurring theme throughout the week was the financial, structural, and societal challenges and the limitations they create in the daily work with young refugees. This topic sparked many honest conversations and will remain a central concern for the entire “Empowered by ACTion” project – as we continue to explore how civic education and empowerment can be strengthened even in challanging contexts.
Many participants said that they are leaving the training with inspiration, practical tools and a sense of connection – ready to continuie their work with fresh ideas and a new international network.
What’s next
We are already looking forward to our next international training in Prague (November 2025). There, we will focus on creative and art-based methods in civic education. The Call for Participants will be published on this Website.
